Discus Fish keep Dying

Question
Hi Lynda. About a year and a half ago I started purchasing discus fish and they were all doing good. I had them in a 55 galloon aquarium. As of recently, when going near the aquarium they would easily get freaked out. After freaking out, they would swim on the top of the tank and scratch themselves and the next day they would be dead. I have no idea what can be causing them to freak out? Plesae help me? Thanks

Answer
Hi Chris,
Keeping Discus fish is not the easiest thing to do.  Two discus fish need 50 gallons of water.  Their water must be soft, acidic, and heated to 84 degrees.  You should never have ammonia, nitrites, or nitrates in their water.  Discus fish absorb everything in the water which is why it must be kept very very clean.  I do not know the reason why your discus fish died, only that it was surely something that did not agree with them in your water.  It sounds like a viral infection which there is nothing anyone can do to cure them.  Check your water chemistry to see if it  could have been the cause.  When fish die in numbers, it is always a mystery.
Lynda